The honorable Shaykh, were the congregational mosques and other mosques established from the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) until now for the purpose of people moving to them and gathering?
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The questioner : The honorable Shaykh, were the congregational mosques and other mosques established from the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) until now for the purpose of people moving to them and gathering there to perform the prayer and carry out some acts of worship collectively inside the mosques, or were they established for the purpose of transmitting the worship and prayers ready-made to people's homes via loudspeakers, at the highest possible volume, thereby paralyzing people's worship and their specific glorifications in their homes, especially women, the elderly, the old, and the sick who cannot go to the mosque, so they worship in their homes in peace and tranquility? We ask for your guidance, may you be rewarded.
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that mosques have been built since the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) until this day for the sake of prayer, reciting the Qur'an, dhikr (remembrance of Allah), and other acts of obedience that are prescribed in them. The most important thing is establishing the prayer in congregation. Allah the Exalted said:[At-Tawbah 9:108] And He the Exalted said: [Al-Jinn 72:18].
As for transmitting the prayer via loudspeakers from the tops of the minarets, it is, as the questioner said,The questioner : a disturbance to people in their homes, a paralysis of their intellects and their private glorifications, and it may be a nuisance to some who are sleeping or to the sick who have not found rest except at that time. Then, it is also a harm to the other mosques near this sound and a disturbance to them.
Many people who were near mosques that raised the adhan from the minarets told me that if the voice of the imam in the mosque whose prayer was transmitted via these loudspeakers was better than the voice of their imam, and his recitation was better than the recitation of their imam, they would follow that imam who was outside their mosque and abandon their imam, not listening to the recitation of their imam.
Some people also told me that they would say the takbir (Allahu Akbar) with the takbir of the imam of the neighboring mosque, thinking that this takbir was the takbir of their own imam. This is a matter known to many people, and it is also a matter that cannot be controlled. In other words, someone might say: "My voice does not reach such-and-such a mosque and does not disturb its people." But this is a matter that cannot be controlled because it is subject to the direction of the wind. If the wind is blowing toward the neighboring mosques, they will hear the sound, and if it is blowing in the opposite direction, they will not hear the sound. And perhaps the sound is very strong, so it is heard by those around it regardless of the direction of the wind.
It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in two hadiths that Ibn 'Abd al-Barr authenticated: that he heard the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) reciting and raising their voices, so he forbade them from that and said:Sunan Abi Dawud 1332Sahih (Al-Albani) In another wording: Sunan Abi Dawud 1332Sahih (Al-Albani), and the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned that it is not permissible for a person to raise his voice in a way that disturbs the worshippers.
And my advice to my Muslim brothers is to leave this action by which they disturb those near them and harm them. This is a matter that has come by explicit text from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and what has come by explicit text from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) leaves no room for independent legal reasoning (ijtihad). So if we know that there is disturbance to the mosques around them and confusion in their prayers, then this falls under what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade.
And the benefits that may be obtained, or that some people may imagine are obtained, are very submerged in the harms that result from it. For some people say: "Raising the prayer from the minarets may be listened to by some women in the homes, and they benefit from the recitation of the reciter."
We say: This benefit is submerged on the side of the other harms, because some people do not want to hear this sound which occupies them, as the questioner mentioned regarding their private dhikr and their private recitation. And some people are in need of sleep because they stayed up all night, staying awake all night due to illness or anxiety, and they sleep after praying Fajr, but they cannot go out to pray in the mosques. Then this sound comes which disturbs them and wakes them from sleep. So this is a harm. Then, we have seen and witnessed many people that when they approach the mosque and hear the imam at the end of the recitation, they go running and hasten their running, meaning they run to catch up with the imam in the bowing (ruku'). And this is falling into what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade.
In any case, the entire benefit is for a person to follow what came from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) by doing what is commanded and leaving what is forbidden. And if it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he forbade worshippers from disturbing one another by raising their voices in recitation, then this is the deciding factor in the issue. And there is no improvement of intellects after the existence of the text, ever.
So my advice to my brothers is to leave this. And if the need or dire necessity calls for using the amplifier inside the mosque, let them use it inside the mosque, as if the mosque is large and there are women who do not hear except with it, or if it is on the day of Jumu'ah (Friday), let them use it. And if the need does not call for it even inside the mosques, then it should not be used either, because that leads to a person becoming accustomed to this amplifier so that he does not become humble except when he uses it. And because in this is a waste of money by spending on electricity.
And I hope that no one criticizes us on this point, saying that the spending on electricity is very little, and how much electricity is spent on things of no benefit. We say: It is a trivial matter for one person, but if it is estimated that there are hundreds of mosques in the town and these amplifiers are used, how many kilowatts do they consume during the five prayers in every day and night? In any case, the most important thing for me in this issue is that raising the voice from the minarets, especially in the loud night prayers, with the closeness of the mosques, is a harm to the worshippers to one another. And it may also be a harm to those around the mosques in the houses. And although there may be a benefit for some residents of the houses, there may also be a harm and a nuisance for some residents of the houses. And the legal principle among the scholars of knowledge is: "Repelling harms is more important than seeking benefits when they are equal".
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : There is no doubt that mosques have been built since the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) until this day for the sake of prayer, reciting the Qur'an, dhikr (remembrance of Allah), and other acts of obedience that are prescribed in them. The most important thing is establishing the prayer in congregation. Allah the Exalted said:
A mosque founded on righteousness from the first day is more worthy for you to stand in
لمسجد أسس على التقوى من أول يوم أحق أن تقوم فيهAnd [He revealed] that the masjids are for Allah, so do not invoke with Allah anyone.
وأن المساجد لله فلا تدعوا مع الله أحداًAs for transmitting the prayer via loudspeakers from the tops of the minarets, it is, as the questioner said,The questioner : a disturbance to people in their homes, a paralysis of their intellects and their private glorifications, and it may be a nuisance to some who are sleeping or to the sick who have not found rest except at that time. Then, it is also a harm to the other mosques near this sound and a disturbance to them.
Many people who were near mosques that raised the adhan from the minarets told me that if the voice of the imam in the mosque whose prayer was transmitted via these loudspeakers was better than the voice of their imam, and his recitation was better than the recitation of their imam, they would follow that imam who was outside their mosque and abandon their imam, not listening to the recitation of their imam.
Some people also told me that they would say the takbir (Allahu Akbar) with the takbir of the imam of the neighboring mosque, thinking that this takbir was the takbir of their own imam. This is a matter known to many people, and it is also a matter that cannot be controlled. In other words, someone might say: "My voice does not reach such-and-such a mosque and does not disturb its people." But this is a matter that cannot be controlled because it is subject to the direction of the wind. If the wind is blowing toward the neighboring mosques, they will hear the sound, and if it is blowing in the opposite direction, they will not hear the sound. And perhaps the sound is very strong, so it is heard by those around it regardless of the direction of the wind.
It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in two hadiths that Ibn 'Abd al-Barr authenticated: that he heard the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) reciting and raising their voices, so he forbade them from that and said:
one should not raise the voice in recitation or in prayer over the voice of the other
لا يجهر بعضكم على بعض في القراءة أو قال في الصلاةOne should not trouble the other
لا يؤذين بعضكم بعضاًAnd my advice to my Muslim brothers is to leave this action by which they disturb those near them and harm them. This is a matter that has come by explicit text from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and what has come by explicit text from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) leaves no room for independent legal reasoning (ijtihad). So if we know that there is disturbance to the mosques around them and confusion in their prayers, then this falls under what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade.
And the benefits that may be obtained, or that some people may imagine are obtained, are very submerged in the harms that result from it. For some people say: "Raising the prayer from the minarets may be listened to by some women in the homes, and they benefit from the recitation of the reciter."
We say: This benefit is submerged on the side of the other harms, because some people do not want to hear this sound which occupies them, as the questioner mentioned regarding their private dhikr and their private recitation. And some people are in need of sleep because they stayed up all night, staying awake all night due to illness or anxiety, and they sleep after praying Fajr, but they cannot go out to pray in the mosques. Then this sound comes which disturbs them and wakes them from sleep. So this is a harm. Then, we have seen and witnessed many people that when they approach the mosque and hear the imam at the end of the recitation, they go running and hasten their running, meaning they run to catch up with the imam in the bowing (ruku'). And this is falling into what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade.
In any case, the entire benefit is for a person to follow what came from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) by doing what is commanded and leaving what is forbidden. And if it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he forbade worshippers from disturbing one another by raising their voices in recitation, then this is the deciding factor in the issue. And there is no improvement of intellects after the existence of the text, ever.
So my advice to my brothers is to leave this. And if the need or dire necessity calls for using the amplifier inside the mosque, let them use it inside the mosque, as if the mosque is large and there are women who do not hear except with it, or if it is on the day of Jumu'ah (Friday), let them use it. And if the need does not call for it even inside the mosques, then it should not be used either, because that leads to a person becoming accustomed to this amplifier so that he does not become humble except when he uses it. And because in this is a waste of money by spending on electricity.
And I hope that no one criticizes us on this point, saying that the spending on electricity is very little, and how much electricity is spent on things of no benefit. We say: It is a trivial matter for one person, but if it is estimated that there are hundreds of mosques in the town and these amplifiers are used, how many kilowatts do they consume during the five prayers in every day and night? In any case, the most important thing for me in this issue is that raising the voice from the minarets, especially in the loud night prayers, with the closeness of the mosques, is a harm to the worshippers to one another. And it may also be a harm to those around the mosques in the houses. And although there may be a benefit for some residents of the houses, there may also be a harm and a nuisance for some residents of the houses. And the legal principle among the scholars of knowledge is: "Repelling harms is more important than seeking benefits when they are equal".
The questioner : May Allah reward you.